Problem Children

Chapter Three

The next day Hannah walked to her classroom this time earlier. Angus wasn't there yet so she thought it'd be a good idea to get some extra reading done. No matter what Angus said or did, she was determined to be a good student.

Malcolm threw his shoe at his sleeping brother. Angus sat up in a huff. "Wake up, Ang, we're gonna be late." He jumped out of bed and ran after his brother and stopped. A devious smile spread his face. He turned to grab his prize and followed.

After breakfast they dressed in clean uniforms (their mother luckily hadn't asked) and headed for school. Angus kept his slingshot hidden in his satchel. Hannah'll never see this coming.

The bell rang and it was time for spelling. The old teacher wrote some sentences on the board for the students to copy in their notebooks. Hannah had started hers early so she was ahead. And Angus wanted to try out his new toy. He'd write a sentence, then decide it wasn't good enough. Rip it out, crumple it up, and it was perfect ammo.

Hannah's face was buried in her notebook and didn't notice him setting up his weapon. Until a piece of spelling paper hit her head. She glanced over to see Angus working. Her eyes went back to her notebook, while the boy's hands went back to scheming.

Paper after paper went flying into Hannah's workspace. Having had enough, she leaned over. "Let me help you pick those up, Angus," she whispered. Angus smiled and leaned back in his chair, proud of his accomplishments. Annoyed her, and got her to clean them up. That'd show her for yesterday.

While Angus thought about how great his day was going, Hannah sneakily tied his shoelaces together. The pieces of paper remained on the floor and she sat back up. The two kids shared a smile, then went back to work. But Angus wasn't quite done yet. Just as he fixed up two papers crumpled into one, he fired. The paper went soaring to the front of the room and hit the teacher on the back of her head.

A pair of angry eyes turned around, scanning the classroom. They fell upon Angus who squirmed in his seat. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

"Apparently a lot of water," Angus replied making the class laugh. He smiled at Hannah who just rolled her eyes. The teacher was not amused.

"Tell me, Mr. Young. Was it you who threw that piece of paper?"

"No, no. That would be immature," he laughed nervously.

"Oh, immature huh? Seems you would know a lot about that wouldn't you?" A bony finger wagged at the crumpled papers around his desk. He twiddled his thumbs. "Tsk tsk, Mr. Young. And on your second day too. Let this serve as a reminder, class. The intolerance, the childishness, and the disruptive behavior of this boy will not go unnoticed. I'm afraid you'll have to go to the principal's office." She pointed at the door.

"But-"

"March!" Angus glared at Hannah before standing up and starting to walk. He felt a tug on his foot and his face met the floor. Snickers echoed throughout the room.

"You!"

"What?" Hannah asked innocently.

"What is it now, Angus?" the teacher asked dryly.

"She tied my laces together, lookit!" The teacher examined them, then turned toward the girl.

"Two disruptions by two new students on day two of the school year. What a pair. That'll send you both to the office. Get going."

The two children walked down to the office. Well, Hannah walked, Angus didn't really have time to fix his laces. "This is all your fault."

"My fault?"